{"id":635276,"date":"2026-03-02T22:08:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T22:08:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/635276\/"},"modified":"2026-03-02T22:08:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T22:08:14","slug":"the-timberwolves-did-not-dawdle-in-denver-instead-they-thrived","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/635276\/","title":{"rendered":"The Timberwolves did not dawdle in Denver. Instead, they thrived."},"content":{"rendered":"

When the Minnesota Timberwolves dawdle, they die.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve all seen it. Julius Randle and Anthony Edwards on the dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble; then bum-rushing or back-siding their way into a crowd. Then deke, upfake, pivot, upfake, pivot, deke, then toss up a contested shot or fling a pass with precious few seconds left for teammates to create.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve all seen it. Timberwolves watching opponents quicken their dribble, splitting the seams in the defense, morphed by lethargy into a gulf-stream glide to the hoop. Or a kickout pass to a lonely marksman in the corner. Or a crowd awaiting an offensive rebound. Or simply Timberwolves watching the backs of jerseys receding from engagement down the court in transition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Wolves did not dawdle in Denver on Sunday. They christened the crucial month of March with alacrity. Instead of die, they thrived, with a pace, purpose and physicality that mined all the precious mettle out of the Nuggets.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It was a consequential contest. The teams entered the game tied for 4th and 5th place in the standings \u2014 the bridge separating the home and road team in the first round of the playoffs \u2014 with records of 37-23, by the Nuggets own the tiebreaker by having beaten the Wolves in all three prior meetings this season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It was the finale of a three-game road trip for Minnesota, who had been resilient but unimpressive, eking out wins against a pair of opponents \u2014 the Trailblazers in Portland, then the Clippers in Los Angeles \u2014 missing their top players due to injury. Denver also was shorthanded \u2014 power forwards Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson were out \u2014 but still possessed the most dynamic offensive duo in the NBA via MVP candidate Nikola Jokic and his fellow All-Star Jamal Murray.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Jokic and Murray conjure the vast majority of their magic in expertly choreographed half-court actions, in part because Jokic carries the intellect and finesse of a surgeon inside a lumbering 284-pound physique. Not coincidentally, Denver has played at a pace below the NBA average in nine of his 11 seasons with the team.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Wolves don\u2019t exploit that vulnerability as often as they should, but the Nuggets have thoughtfully extended it by acquiring a backup center, veteran Jonas Valanciunas, who likewise is prone to collecting cobwebs around his ankles. And with their two most mobile rim-protectors \u2014 Gordon and Watson \u2014 on the shelf, Denver invited an up-tempo shellacking by resting Jokic, Murray and energetic forward Christian Braun to start the second quarter.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Related: The plus\/minus experience of the Anthony Edwards superstardom<\/a><\/p>\n

Minnesota\u2019s go-go bench rockets, Bones Hyland and the recently acquired Ayo Dosunmu were already warmed up through 3:39 of play to close out the first quarter. They open the second stanza alongside center Rudy Gobert, speed-friendly sixth man Naz Reid and the transition titan Jaden McDaniels.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With Jokic, Murray and Braun combining for 27 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists in the first quarter, the Nuggets had jumped to a 31-22 lead. The Wolves erased that in two minutes and eight seconds, snuffing Denver\u2019s offense with a blocked shot and three turnovers. Nuggets coach David Adelman hustled Murray back into the game at that point, then brought back Jokic with 6:34 remaining in the first half, but the fuse had been lit. From 8:26 to 4:05 remaining, the Wolves went on another run, 10-2, and finished out the quarter outscoring Denver 36-19.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After scoring just two fast-break points and two points off the one Nuggets turnover in the first quarter, Minnesota had 10 fast-break points and seven points off four Denver miscues in the second frame. Everyone in coach Chris Finch\u2019s taut eight-player rotation saw action in the quarter, ranging from Hyland\u2019s 3:58 up to McDaniels\u2019 9:21.<\/p>\n

As they are wont to do, the Wolves let go of the rope late in the third quarter, as a 10-2 Denver run cut a 13-point lead down to five with 30 seconds to play. But the Nuggets never drew nearer, as Minnesota racked up a dozen fast break points in the fourth period and forced 7 Denver turnovers resulting in 10 points. Some of that overlaps of course \u2014 fast break baskets commonly happen in transition after a turnover.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the final three quarters, the Wolves sped their way to a 95-77 margin. Twenty of those points were off 13 Denver turnovers and 28 were registered on the break. By contrast, the Nuggets garnered just eight points in the final three periods from Minnesota\u2019s 11 turnovers and had just four fast-break points.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The news here is that the Wolves now have a bench crew that loves to tromp the throttle. Ideally, Finch prefers to stretch out three players to allow all eight in the rotation the leeway to settle into a rhythm. Naz, Bones and Ayo scored a combined 38 points in 62:53 collective minutes, more than usual, albeit still well below the league average for total bench contribution due to the short rotation. But the key is pace: When Bones was on the floor, the Wolves played at a pace of 106.22 offensive possessions per game. During Naz\u2019 time, it jumped to 108.41. And with Ayo, the pace was 108.81.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That is in sharp contrast to the Wolves\u2019 overall pace of 100.50 offensive possessions for the game. But lose that desultory first period and concentrate on the last three quarters. Minnesota\u2019s possessions per game average jumps to 102.00, with Bones (108.53), Naz (110.45) and Ayo (110.92) literally setting the pace.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When the Wolves dawdle, they die. But the rise in tempo can\u2019t be haphazard, nor careless, devoid of purpose, making it speed just for the sake of speed. As we head into the crucible of a playoff race in the Western Conference that feels very familiar to the logjam in last year\u2019s standings, the greatest improvement \u2014 and biggest reason or optimism, in my opinion \u2014 from this year\u2019s squad compared with the 2024-25 edition of the Wolves, is their poise and planful execution when engaged in a more up-tempo style of play.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the Wolves\u2019 38 wins thus far this season, the games have been played at a pace of 102.34 possessions (for each team). In their 23 losses, the games have been played at a pace of 100.37 possessions. That difference of 1.97 is the biggest disparity in tempo between games won and games lost by a team in the Western Conference. (Orlando at +2.78 and Brooklyn at 2.06 \u2014 albeit with only 15 wins for the latter \u2014 have a larger disparity in the East.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Remember, this doesn\u2019t mean that the faster the Wolves perform, the better they\u2019ll be. What it means is that they have more versatility; that their offense has a counter to throw at opponents devoted to stopping isolation plays from Ant and Randle, and that they are taking better advantage of the transition opportunities provided by their defense.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Last season the Wolves finished 30th, dead last, in the impact made by transition plays in their offensive arsenal \u2014 just 15.3% of their total playtypes. This season they have leaped to 11th in frequency, up to 19.2% of their plays. Their efficiency has improved alongside their initiative \u2014 they score 1.16 points per transition play (8th in the NBA) compared with 1.14 points (16th) last season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s more fun to ignore the numbers and just watch the difference when the Wolves snare a defensive rebound. Almost instantly the ball is out of their hands and headed to a middleman already positioned to turn up court for either a speed-dribble or a go-ahead pass to another teammate in the chain. It\u2019s systemic and beautiful in its fearless, mostly successful, execution, even amid the hubbub of players on both teams shifting mindsets to the other end of the court. It saves creative seconds and enhances matchup opportunities even if the offense does evolve into half-court actions. And it sets up an aggressive, probing style of play that often bleeds over into more alert and opportunistic defense when transition tilts in the other direction.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Related: As Wolves tumble into season\u2019s homestretch, consistency of effort is biggest X-factor for how far team will go<\/a><\/p>\n

That ability to pounce more effectively has had a huge impact. Thus far this season, the Wolves have averaged 21 points off opponents\u2019 turnovers per game in their 38 wins and just 15 points off those turnovers in their 23 losses. That six-point disparity is larger than every other team except for the Washington Wizards, whose numbers are skewed by having only 16 wins in their positive sample size versus 43 losses.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Another satisfying thing about this improvement is that it is being driven by the \u201crole players,\u201d instead of the more marquee performers like Ant and Randle. Jaden McDaniels and Donte DiVincenzo (\u201cRagu\u201d) top this list, with Gobert the bench trio not far behind.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For the sake of brevity, and an appropriately brighter spotlight, let\u2019s focus on McDaniels, the primary beneficiary of the Wolves enhanced commitment to transition offense. His transition plays per game have nearly doubled, from 2.1 last season to 4 in 2025-26, comprising 28.7% of his playtypes compared with 17.4% a year ago, with the same high efficiency rate of 1.18 points scored per play.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s fitting that this is happening, because Jaden\u2019s defense is perhaps more responsible for generating turnovers and rebounds than anyone but Gobert. The added repetitions and resulting success has also boosted his confidence and involvement in other aspects of the Wolves offense. The accuracy of his three-point shooting \u2014 44.3%, demolishing his previous career high of 39.8% \u2014 is the most eye-opening, but McDaniels is also doing yeoman work via career-high attempts in two-pointers (at 55.8% accuracy) and the free-throw line (84.7%). Throw in a career-high assist percentage (12.4 \u2014 previous best 9.0) and usage rate (18.2 \u2014 previous best 16.0) and it is easy to forget he earned his spurs as All NBA Defense wing stopper. Until he blocked five shots in the first half of a game last week anyway.<\/p>\n

Put simply, McDaniels epitomizes the ways the Wolves have improved this season. Not only are they better balanced between offense and defense, but have more purposeful, versatile approaches when attacking and defending. And transitioning between them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It provides some perspective on a team that dabbles in loud losses and underwhelming victories. For a roster that lost the services of Nickeil Alexander-Walker and the vintage performances of Mike Conley while never really benefiting from the expected growth spurt of Rob Dillingham, Terrence Shannon Jr. and Jaylen Clark, there has been some upholstery on the fly amid the exalted expectations of back-to-back appearances in the conference finals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So don\u2019t lose the caveats \u2014 in a tight race for playoff positioning, anything can happen. But instead of fretting over lottery odds or wish-casting somebody\u2019s castoff \u2014 a once-promising first-rounder or over-the-hill vet \u2014 into a 2027 rotation piece, note that the rides of March are upon us. Latch the bar, lean back and watch the thrills and ills flash and fade through your eyes and memories.<\/p>\n

And don\u2019t dawdle in despair.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When the Minnesota Timberwolves dawdle, they die.\u00a0 We\u2019ve all seen it. Julius Randle and Anthony Edwards on the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":635277,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3],"tags":[7,152,6,67],"class_list":{"0":"post-635276","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-minnesota-timberwolves","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116161865991487838","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/635276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=635276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/635276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/635277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=635276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=635276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=635276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}